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The Tar Heels looked different, and with better results.

UNC tipped off the season Monday night with a lineup that was three-fifths new and played unlike last year, which we are all trying to forget. After one game, it appears to be a better shooting (53 percent), passing and tougher defensive team, especially an intense and decisive second-half stretch.

Carolina’s eventual 16-point win over athletic and well-coached Radford featured returning seniors Armando Bacot and RJ Davis, who shot 16 for 30. As for their new teammates, we are thankful for names on backs of uniforms.

The first half was a little worrisome, with Bacot grabbing 9 of the team’s 13 rebounds. The first five 3-pointers went in from Paxson Wojick, Harrison Ingram, Davis and two by Cormac Ryan. The Heels were up eight points after Ryan’s first three-ball and was bothering Radford with a switching defense.

But while Carolina was missing its last five 3-pointers of the half, the Highlanders went ahead behind three quick penetrating guards and stayed there for 7-plus minutes before a 5-1 run by Ryan, Ingram and Davis got the lead back that it never lost and stretched out in the second half.

Bacot, whom Radford refused to double for most of the game, started like a first-team All-America with his customary double-double of 25-13. The others got into the board battle in the second half, grabbing 20 of the total 24.

Hubert Davis’ rotation is obviously a work in progress. The starters were the same as the exhibition game, Ingram, Ryan and Wojcik joining AB and RJ. Freshman Zayden High was the first frontcourt sub but wound up seeing only 8 minutes, probably due to the flexible Ingram playing both the 4 and 3 spots.

Elliot Cadeau was the first guard sub, as expected, and played about the same minutes as starter Wojcik. Jalen Washington subbed in for Bacot, sharing the No. 5 spot all night. Cadeau led the team in assists, as expected, with 6 that were twice as many as anyone else in a share-the-ball game that produced 18 assists on 32 made baskets, a far better ratio than 2022-23.

The best defensive stretch helped boost the lead into double figures behind pressure applied by Cadeau, Seth Trimble and Jae’Lyn Withers.

Of local interest, Caleb Love helped No. 12 Arizona win its opener easily, with 12 points, 2 treys, 3 rebounds, 4 assists and no turnovers. Love will be back in the Tar Heel State Friday night when the Wildcats visit second-ranked Duke, which opened the season with a 38-point drubbing of Dartmouth.

Love was last year’s leading shot taker (if not maker). These new Tar Heels could coalesce into a style of play with which we are more familiar.

 

Featured image via Todd Melet


Art Chansky is a veteran journalist who has written ten books, including best-sellers “Game Changers,” “Blue Bloods,” and “The Dean’s List.” He has written and worked for WCHL for decades, having made his first appearance as a student in 1971. His “Sports Notebook” commentary airs daily on the 97.9 The Hill WCHL and his “Art’s Angle” column runs weekly on Chapelboro.

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